In Time
by Nitehuntres
Summary: A woman desperately in need of medical attention to cure her cancer finds hope in the one man she believes can help her- her childhood friend, Spider. But she hasn't spoken to him in years, having left him in her past after realizing she had fallen in love with him and knowing that he would never return her feelings. This is a relatively short story, updated weekly.
1. Chapter 1

**So, first off, thank you to anybody who chose to take a look at my story! Having looked through the fanfiction on this site, it seems I picked the wrong character to like and be inspired to write for. Kruger seems to be extremely popular, which I don't really understand, but you do you fam. Anyway, I never planned on this being a particularly long story, I just wanted to write something about Spider. He was such a mysterious and interesting character to me, with so much room for an amazing backstory. But since I did not create the character, and the people who did offered no insight whatsoever into his past, I wanted to stay away from defining it too much. But this idea took root and I had to see where it went. So without further ado, I hope you enjoy and feel free to leave me reviews!**

Veil sat on her small bunk in her small room, reading a book. It was something of a rarity, in these times. To read an actual book with paper pages, something that could be touched. But it was one of the few things she actually took pleasure in. And she figured if she was going to die, she would at least spend what time she had left enjoying herself.

That morning, she had been diagnosed with lung cancer. Impossible to treat down here on Earth. Less than a year left to live for sure. Anything more than that? Unknown. How incredibly helpful that was.

Veil heard a knock on her front door and sighed, slipping a worn piece of paper into the pages of the book before walking slowly to her door. Her house was little more than a shack, typical of anyone living on Earth. As small as it was, it took her only seconds to get to her door. She stood, staring at the wood. She had a pretty decent guess of who it was, and wasn't looking forward to telling her the news. She sighed, knowing she would have to face her eventually.

Veil slowly opened the door, and stood face to face with her sister, if only in affection and not blood. She watched as Kailani's face went from excited and happy to worried.

"I know that look. And it's never good," she said quietly.

Veil bit her bottom lip and stepped aside, letting her friend pass through the doorway to sit on her couch.

Kailani looked up at her expectantly.

"Lung cancer," Veil said, looking at the floor as she spoke. She couldn't bring herself to look Kailani in the eyes as she delivered what was essentially her own death sentence.

"How long?"

"Less than a year."

Veil heard a quiet sob after a pause and looked up.

"I'm sorry," Kailani said. "I know the last thing you need right now is me crying in your living room. But you're all I have left, Veil."

Veil sighed quietly. She really didn't know what to say. Kailani's parents had passed several years ago, and her younger brother had died only two years ago from disease.

She walked to the couch and sat down next to Kailani, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"Isn't there anything you can do about it?" Kailani asked.

Veil opened her mouth to reply no, then shut it again. She couldn't lie to her. Truth was, Veil did have something she could do. It was a long shot, and more likely to fail than not. There was always the possibility that it would end with her dying before the cancer could strangle her. But that wasn't what was stopping her. It was who she would have to go through. She had worked so hard to forget about him.

But looking at the sobbing girl in her arms, Veil knew it wasn't really her choice. It would be selfish of her to take away the only person left in Kailani's life who cared just because she didn't want to see him again. She sighed and ran her free hand through her hair; it seemed her decision was made.

"Spider," Veil said quietly.

Kailani looked at her questioningly.

"Spider can get me to Elysium. For the right price, of course," Veil explained.

"Yeah I've heard about him. But there's no guarantee you'll survive to get there. I heard that not that long ago, he sent up three ships and two were shot down."

"Well... I'm gonna die either way, aren't I?"

Kailani forced a small smile. "I guess that's true."

"Well, no point in wasting any time," Veil said, standing.

"Wait, you're leaving now? Just like that?" Kailani said, standing with her.

"Might as well. Not like I have anything better to do anyway."

"Just... be careful, okay? I love you," Kailani said, stepping forward to hug her tightly.

"Love you too," Veil said, hugging her back.

"Wish me luck," she said, forcing a smile as she walked out her door and headed down the familiar dirt road, leaving Kailani looking forlorn in her living room.


	2. Chapter 2

**I'm back with Chapter 2! I'll start off by saying thank you to anybody who took the time to read Chapter 1 and stay tuned for Chapter 2- it is much appreciated. I can definitely say that I enjoyed writing this one more than the first one, and I hope you readers are interested enough to stick with me through this story. Enjoy!**

It had been years since Veil had seen Spider. They had been childhood friends, had grown up together. She remembered how other kids had made fun of him for his disability, his right leg that had never worked right. She had always defended him, always protected him. She could recall more than a few times when he had ended up bruised and beaten by bullies before he had learned to defend himself.

She couldn't help but grin as she thought about how much he had changed. Now, people knew better than to fuck with Spider.

Veil had left him behind years ago. They had stayed friends well into adulthood, but it wasn't long before Veil realized that she cared for him as more than just a friend. But she also knew that he wasn't the type to have a steady relationship; it wasn't for him. She respected that, even understood it to a point... but she couldn't be around him anymore, knowing he would never return her feelings. So, she had just left one day. Left a note, and walked away permanently. She had had no intention of going back; why invoke old feelings when she knew nothing would ever happen between them?

It seemed she didn't have much of a choice now.

The place was every bit as dirty as she remembered it. Not that that was particularly surprising; he was a smuggler after all. She made her way through the dark and cluttered halls, ignoring the men who catcalled and whistled after her. Years of being around Spider had left her well-adjusted to obnoxious men. She knew where she would find him: the huge room that served as the main base of operations for the smuggler, computers covering almost every square inch of wall, his desk placed in the middle of the room near the back, where he could keep an eye on the wall of monitors behind him. She paused outside, forcing herself to take deep breaths and relax. No matter how he reacted to seeing her again, being on edge was not going to help anything. Taking one last breath, she forced herself to finally enter the room.

She walked hesitantly through the doorway, her eyes fixing immediately on him. His curly, dark brown hair was slightly longer than she remembered, but other than that he hadn't changed. Dingy white tank, necklace, tattoos, and the brace on his leg were all strikingly familiar to her. He was sitting behind a desk piled with computers and other bits of technology, his bad right leg propped up on the desk in front of him. He glanced up at her, and froze.

"Veil?" he said quietly, his voice every bit as deep and accented as she remembered it.

"Hi, Spider," she said quietly.

He grinned and got up quickly, snatching his cane and walking over to her. She couldn't deny how surprised she was when he hugged her tightly, pulling her in close like he had many times when they were kids. She hugged him back, trying to ignore her heart as it sped up at his proximity.

"It's been a long time," he said, releasing her and gesturing to a chair in front of his desk. "Sit, and let's catch up."

She blinked, completely taken off guard. Spider had always been... reserved as an adult. It came with the business; any small sign of weakness could be lethal. That he was acting like this, especially after how she had left- it was completely out of character for him.

Putting it down to surprise and happiness at the return of his childhood friend, she sat in the chair and waited until he had sat back down across from her.

"So how have you been?" he asked.

"Well, I've been pretty good. I was doing about as good as everyone else who doesn't live on Elysium. But... um... today I went to the hospital, and..." she trailed off awkwardly. They had known each other since they were young, had grown up together; she'd known him much longer than even Kailani and she had barely managed to tell her.

"What did they say?" he asked quietly, all previous exuberance gone.

"I... I have lung cancer. Less than a year to live," she said, looking down at her hands as she told him; just as with Kailani, she couldn't bear to look at him.

"I'm so sorry Veil," he said, and Veil looked up to see his eyes were indeed filled with sadness. "For the cancer and because I can't help you. At least not right now. The skies are blocked; a mission with Max went wrong recently and Elysium shut down the air."

"Max? Max de Costa?" Now that was a name she hadn't heard in a while; she was suddenly very interested, her illness forgotten for the moment.

"The very same. I sent him after some data that could help with the business, but it seems that data is a little more important than what I had thought. Elysium wouldn't be trying so hard to get it back otherwise. Unfortunately, I have no idea where he is or if he's even still alive. Meanwhile, I've got guys trying to crack the code to get us flying again, but that could take days," he paused, looking hesitant. Then, "So why don't you stick around for a while and see what happens?"  
Veil thought she heard a hint of hope creeping into his voice.

The sane part of her brain screamed at her that she had left here for a reason. But she ignored that part. If she was going to die, one way or another, she at least wanted to spend some of those last days with a man she... cared for.

"It seems I have nothing better to do anyway, so why not," Veil replied.

"Excellent! You can have your old room back if you like. No one's using it," he said.

"Alright," she said and got up to go see how destroyed her room was.

"And Veil?" Spider called after her; she turned to look at him. "I'm glad you came back."

She smiled and turned around, walking out of the room, her heart left pounding at his words.

Spider watched as Veil left the room, a frown creasing his forehead. What the hell was wrong with him?

When he saw her, he had just felt so happy, like a weight had come off his shoulders that he hadn't realized was there; he had even hugged her, a real geniune hug. And then telling her how glad he actually was that she had come back? His men were going to start thinking he was going soft. Hell, he was starting to think he was going soft.


	3. Chapter 3

Veil lay on her bed, reading a book. She had been back at Spider's hideout for a little over a day. She had been pleasantly shocked to find her room almost exactly as she had left it a few years before; Spider must not have let anybody near it.

She had essentially been blocking out all that had been going on around her. She rarely left her room, and only spoke to anyone when Spider came and updated her on what was going on. She preferred it that way, a need-to-know basis. The only thing that concerned her was getting up to Elysium. What it took to get the flights working again, she could care less about. Within the past hour or so, things had seemed like they were getting worked up out there.

She imagined something big was finally happening so she was a little shocked when she heard a quiet knock on her door. She had figured everybody was too busy to be bothered with her.

"Come in," she said, just loud enough to be heard from the other side of the door.

Her eyebrows shot up when Spider came limping in. If something big was indeed going on, it was more than a little odd that he would be here.

"What's going on?" Veil asked, sitting up and closing her book.

He shifted uncomfortably and avoided her gaze. Veil wondered what could possibly be going on that would make him act like this; it was nothing like him.

"Max came back. What he has in his head... it's the key to Elysium. We could make everybody a citizen, give everybody access to healthcare," he paused, his expression darkening.

"So what's the problem? That's fantastic."

"He's gone. I had no way of getting him up there anytime soon, and he doesn't have much time left before the radiation in his body kills him. Kruger's been hunting him for this information, so Max used it to get on his craft and get to Elysium. But before he left, I managed to put a tracker on him. With the skies reopened for Kruger, I'm taking two men and heading up there after him-"

"What?" Veil yelled, suddenly on her feet. "You can't go up there, you'll have Elysium officers all over you, trying to kill you. And there's no guarantee Max will even still be alive by the time you can get to him. It's a suicide mission," she finished, panic and fear for him roiling low in her stomach, clouding her senses. She couldn't lose him.

"Yes, there will be people trying to kill me, but that's why I'm bringing guards, to protect me at least long enough to get to Max. I don't exactly have much of a choice. The information in Max's head can save the world, Veil."

"Okay, so you'll have guards. And if those guards get killed, then what? Down here, your reputation protects you. Up there, it means nothing. They will kill you, Spider, without a second thought. The world isn't yours to save. And since when have you ever cared about saving it anyway? The only person you've ever cared about protecting is yourself," the last word barely came out as more than a whisper, and she felt herself nearing toward tears. She hadn't said what she did to hurt him; it was only truth. Over the years, he had developed a finely honed sense of self-preservation and she had never begrudged him that. But that didn't mean the words didn't still hurt her to say.

"That's not true," he said quietly and as he took a step forward, Veil realized how close she had moved to him while speaking. That one step had them brushing lightly against each other.

Without warning, he suddenly leaned down and pressed his lips against hers, at first nothing more than a light brush of his lips, then deeper as he took another step closer to her, pressing their bodies together. His one hand stayed on his cane to keep his balance while his other slowly slid up her body until he cupped her cheek. Just as suddenly as it had started, he suddenly pulled away and walked quickly back to the door. As Veil stood in shock, he paused in the doorway.

Looking back at her over his shoulder he whispered, "I love you," then disappeared into the dark hallway.

Veil stood frozen in place for several moments before she sank back down onto the bed, unsure of what to think or how to feel. Immediately came the elation, the realization that he did indeed return her feelings and that she had a chance at having a relationship with him. Then the despair as she realized that that chance was probably nothing now that he had left for Elysium.

Feeling helpless and with nothing more to do, she simply curled into a ball on the bed, angled so she could watch the door and hope that she would be able to see him walk through it again.

As Spider walked away from Veil's bedroom and the woman he loved, he found he regretted not telling her how he had felt years before that. He had known long before she left that he loved her, but he couldn't find it in him to tell her. A smuggler, responsible for the deaths of hundreds that had been shot down in space on his ships, and the one thing he had never been able to do was admit his feelings to the woman he loved.

Now, he forced himself to continue walking toward the ship that would either lead to a revolution or his own death. While one part of him wanted nothing more than to go back to that room and show Veil how much he loved her, the saner part said that that would do no good. Not only would it mean that the world had no chance of getting better, but it also meant that Veil would die of cancer. No choice, indeed.


	4. Chapter 4

It had been hours. When Spider had left, it had been early night; now it was early morning. Veil could not find it in her to sleep. Instead, she had stayed in the same position all night, hoping beyond all hope that Spider would make it back alive. She heard through the walls that the mission had been successful; the whole world knew that. But she heard nothing of Spider; for all she knew, he had died ensuring that the mission succeed.

It wasn't until late afternoon that she heard a light tap on the door before it slowly opened, and she sat up, anticipation racing along her every nerve. Her breath caught in her throat and relief washed through her as she saw who it was.

Spider walked slowly into the room, his clothes even more tattered and dirty than they had been before he had left, a dingy white cloth tied around his hand, a small spot of red showing through on his palm; he leaned heavily on his cane.

Before he could say anything, she jumped off the bed and ran toward him, wrapping her arms around his waist and burying her face in his chest. After only a moment's hesitation, he hugged her back with one arm, keeping his other hand on his cane. When she moved to pull away, he moved his hand to her hip and held her in place only inches away from him. Then he leaned down and hesitantly pressed his lips against hers. She responded almost instantly, kissing him back and resting her hands against his chest.

By the time he ended the kiss, they were both out of breath. Veil smiled up at him, her heart bursting with happiness but before she could say anything, Spider kissed her again, this time softer.

"I love you," he whispered against her lips.

"I love you too," she whispered back, and then he was suddenly moving.

He pushed the door closed behind him then spun her around, pressing her against it and kissing her feverishly. She moaned against his mouth as he pushed even closer to her. He let the cane fall to the floor and instead kept one hand on the door behind her so as not to lose his balance. Her hands pulled at his shirt, and he stopped kissing her only long enough for him to pull his shirt over his head and drop it to the floor. As he slowly kissed down her neck and to her collarbone, nibbling lightly at it, she ran her hands over his smooth abdomen, relishing in the feel of his bare skin.

As Spider moved back up to kiss her lips again, she wrapped one leg around his waist and moved so her pelvis was flush against his, feeling his erection press into her. He groaned at the intoxicating new position, grinding against her before suddenly pulling away.

Veil looked at him in surprise and confusion, wondering if she had done something wrong or if he had simply realized that he didn't want her.

"Bed," he gasped out, and bent to retrieve his cane.

"Don't," she said gently, twining her arm through his. "I'll help."

He smiled and she helped him walk to the bed. It was something she had grown used to doing as a kid, when kids would break his cane, leaving him helpless.

Veil waited for him to lay down on the bed, then moved on top of him, straddling his hips. She slowly ground against him and both moaned at the feeling. Growing impatient, Veil pulled her shirt off and then her bra. Spider's eyes filled with love and adoration and his hands began exploring her body, tracing her curves.

Then he suddenly sat up and crushed her to him, the heat between them almost unbearable. He rolled them so he was on top of her and moved his head lower, taking one of his breasts into his mouth, suckling hard on it. She moaned loudly, her fingers digging into his back. He grinned at the pleasure he was causing her, finally doing what he had wanted to for all these years.

Spider lavished kisses down her stomach, then began unbuttoning her jeans, pulling them off with her underwear and throwing them into a corner of the dark room. Veil stopped him before he could go any further, fisting her hands in his curls and pulling his head back up to her lips.

"Foreplay?" he managed to gasp out inbetween kisses.

"Who wants to wait?" she replied.

Too aroused to argue the point, Spider instead turned to his own pants and Veil helped him to take them off and they soon joined hers on the floor. Then he stilled and looked at her, faint worry showing in his eyes.

"You're absolutely sure you want to do this?" he asked quietly.

"I've wanted this for a long time," she replied as she moved her hands up to tangle in the hair at the nape of his neck.

Spider leaned down and kissed her, without any urgency this time, then slowly pushed inside her until his whole length filled her. He paused for a moment, giving her time to adjust before he began moving, slowly at first then speeding up. Veil's head arched back, a loud moan escaping her as he drove her closer and closer, never once missing the spot that made her see stars. Her legs instinctively wound around him and she began moving her hips in time with his thrusts.

Veil cried out as she came, scraping her fingers down his back; Spider shuddered at the feeling of her clamping down around him and pushed harder and faster until he found his release not long after. Chest heaving and drenched in sweat, he collapsed next to her; he wrapped his arm around her and she rested her head on his chest.

They stayed in silence like that for a time before Veil reluctantly moved away so she could look at him. Reading her expression, Spider answered her unspoken question.

"I almost died up there, Veil. If Max hadn't sacrificed himself for me... for all of us... I would have. And I realized that if I were to die, my only regret would be not telling you how I felt when I had the chance to. I've been in love with you since before you left; it just took this long and the closest I've ever come to death for me to realize I needed to tell you," he spoke quietly, his eyes never leaving hers.

Veil smiled sweetly and rested one hand on his cheek, his curls teasing the tips of her fingers.

"All this time, I never thought you would love me; it was the reason why I left in the first place. It was just too painful for me to be around you when I thought you'd never return my feelings. It broke my heart to leave, but I thought if I did I would be able to get over my feelings for you; instead, I think they only grew stronger. I... I don't know what I would've done if you had died, Spider. I would've lost my childhood friend and the man I loved; it would've destroyed me. I would've spent my last months alive depressed..." she trailed off and before she could say anymore, Spider interrupted.

"There's no point in worrying about that now. I'm alive and we have access to med facilities. We can cure your cancer."

"Then what?" Veil asked.

"I don't know. Travel, maybe? I mean, that's what we always wanted to do as children and I have enough money stored away. I'm kinda out of a job now, so there's nothing tying us down anymore, Veil. We can do whatever we please," Spider said, a slow smile spreading across his face, a light entering his eyes that Veil hadn't seen since they were kids.

Veil smiled brightly back at him. She saw the hope of a bright future in his eyes and for the first time since she had left, she felt hope blossoming in her chest. She moved back next to him, resting her head on his chest again and closing her eyes. Tomorrow, their future would begin, but for the rest of today she just wanted to enjoy this time with him.


End file.
